Formula 1: Carlos Sainz's Mexico dominance came at a (small) cost
By Asher Fair
Carlos Sainz Jr. entered the Mexico City Grand Prix at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez trailing Red Bull's Max Verstappen by 139 points in the Formula 1 world championship standings, and there were 146 points on the table for all drivers over the course of the 2024 season's final five race weekends.
Sainz dominated Sunday's 71-lap race around the 17-turn, 2.674-mile (4.303-kilometer) road course in Mexico City, Mexico from the pole position en route to his second win of the year and fourth career victory. He took 17 points out of Verstappen's lead, with the three-time reigning world champion placing sixth.
Sainz now trails Verstappen by 122 points, but there are now just 120 points on the table over the course of the season's final four race weekends in Brazil, Las Vegas, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi.
Sainz eliminated in Mexico; three Verstappen challengers remain
To be completely fair, Sainz was never truly a world championship threat in 2024, but the 2024 season has shown that you can never say never. Now, however, he is officially out, and ironically his chances hit 0% after a Grand Prix victory.
A race winner scores 25 points, and he can earn an additional point by recording a race's fastest lap. There are also two sprint races remaining on the schedule in Brazil and Qatar, and a sprint race winner scores eight points.
This means that there are only three drivers still mathematically eligible to challenge Verstappen for this year's world championship. McLaren's Lando Norris trails him by 47 points, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc trails him by 71 points, and McLaren's Oscar Piastri trails him by 111 points.
Both Leclerc and Piastri face the possibility of being eliminated in Brazil, as they must remain with 86 points of the 27-year-old Dutchman to retain championship eligibility heading into Las Vegas in a few weeks.
At FanDuel Sportsbook, Verstappen is still the favorite to win the world championship at -440, followed by Norris at +330, Leclerc at +3100, and Piastri at +19000.
Odds and availability are subject to change.
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The sprint race at Interlagos Circuit is set to be shown live on ESPN2 starting at 9:55 a.m. ET this Saturday, November 2. The Sao Paulo Grand Prix is set to be shown live on the same channel starting at 11:55 a.m. ET on Sunday, November 3. Start a free trial of FuboTV today and don't miss any of the action from race weekend 21 of a record-breaking 24 on this year's calendar!
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